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Life is a Loft

Life is a Loft

As industry withdrew, creative types populated the empty factory floors of big cities. Art, furniture design and work life profited from this international trend.

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As industry withdrew, creative types populated the empty factory floors of big cities. Art, furniture design and work life profited from this international trend.

Space is not divided into rooms, it becomes one unit.

A bath tub built by hand from wooden slats and tar, used only in the summer as the winter was too cold to wash with no hot water – here bathed the understated artist Robert Rauschenberg, who in 1953 was one of the first New Yorkers to move into a ‘loft’. Only 10 dollars a month in rent, financial reasons were the fundamental triggers for the loft trend.

Six metre high walls, steel beams, large windows – these spaces were transformed into the studios and apartments of painters, sculptors and dancers. Soon, these artists’ lofts were creating competition for the galleries as they served not just as living and workspaces but also as exhibition areas. The pinnacle of this development came with Andy Warhol’s NYC studio ‘Factory’ - the clue in the name.

Things then developed at an alarming rate. The New York politicians realised the potential of factory floors and supported their development by legalizing the often not-quite-legitimate living situations of such artists. The loft moved from the margins to the mainstream of society. This also meant that rents rose – and quickly.

Soon, the creative scene in London discovered the new opportunities available. In Germany, Frankfurt and Leipzig developed into loft-cities and in Paris, the Bohème moved into derelict industrial spaces. Today lofts are no longer chaotic, improvised, stopgap solutions, but are an important element in the housing market.

"In Europe, the loft was ‘discovered’ only in the ‘70s, but by the '80s it was a status symbol. Currently, at least in big cities, there are only a small amount of derelict industrial buildings available to convert into houses." Ursula Geismann, Trend Analyst of the Association of the German Furniture Industry

This has led to a new and popular type of architecture: the building loft. The loft concept has also increased interest in the open floor plan – living together in a large, open space. Zoning has simultaneously become more important, ensuring a degree of privacy either with partitions, open shelves or other furniture that is placed in the middle of the room. "Since this development, our sofas also have visual appeal from any angle," says Ursula Geismann.

No longer able to divide the space into rooms, architects became sculptors that ‘model’ space with steps, small mezzanines or rooms in rooms. Many residents enjoy the large, airy space of a factory floor by attaching a swing or a hanging chair to a brace in the steel structure. The loft has become a playground for new ideas. The open floor plan has also contributed to trend of the kitchen, living and dining room becoming one unit.

Pieces of furniture become sculptures that can be appreciated from all angles.

Light and open spaces: lofts break with traditional ways of living and create room for new ideas.

Thanks to lofts, we have increasingly popular co-working spaces, open spaces, where you can rent a work space on an hourly or daily basis.

Dismantling boundaries, rethinking habits and creating new connections – the loft has always been an inspiration. It has also changed architecture of work spaces, with individual offices torn down in favour of open plan workspaces. Simultaneously, furniture is increasingly designed to create islands of tranquillity: sofas and chairs with head-high backrests and armrests, or desks that shield their occupants with large hoods. However, as pioneering as the first lofts were, they also allowed for an element of preservation. Had lofts not imbued the old factory buildings with new life, they would have been demolished. And it’s precisely in this balance of old and new that the sustainable success of the trend resides, showing once again how ground breaking and inspirational the past can be.